Sprosselbrunnen bei Schönberg, Natural spring in Lauf an der Pegnitz, Germany
Sprosselbrunnen is a small spring north of Haimendorf in the municipality of Lauf an der Pegnitz. Water emerges from numerous tube-like outlets in a Rhät-Lias sandstone rock banded with clay layers; the higher outlets are now dry due to erosion. After about 150 metres the water flows into the Hüttenbach.
The spring is designated geotope 574Q002 by the Bavarian State Office for the Environment. Over millennia, water carved a small gorge into the transitional layers of Rhaetian sandstone below the spring, where hard sandstone beds form a cuesta. The water flows about 150 metres before joining the Hüttenbach, a tributary of the Pegnitz.
The name Sprosselbrunnen comes from the Franconian word spratzeln, which describes the sound water makes as it emerges from the rock. You can hear this characteristic sound when you stand at the spring today.
You can reach the spring using marked hiking trails that start from Haimendorf or Schönberg and follow the green ring trail system. The route is well marked and easy to follow for most visitors.
The spring is listed by the Bavarian State Office for the Environment as geotope 574Q002. Its water emerges from numerous outlet tubes in a Rhaetian-Lias sandstone rock banded with clay layers, and the higher tubes have stopped flowing as erosion of the clay inside the rock continues.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 94,418 contributors worldwide.
